OF THE OLD WORLD. 95 



The arms were long, attenuated, and wizened ; and 

 may Jove defend me from such nails as were at- 

 tatched to the extremities of the digits, which re- 

 sembled more the claws of a huge vulture, both in 



colour and form, than anything else. M said 



that the existence of these wild people of the forest 

 had been often questioned, but that he had always 

 believed that there were such tribes, having come 

 across their traces in the dense forests to the south 

 of the Neilgherri Mountains. 



" A heavy shower of rain fell in the afternoon, 

 but towards evening the weather cleared up again, 

 and we pitched our tent, built a hut of branches for 

 the people, and lit a huge fire, round which all were 

 assembled, preparing the evening repast. One of 

 the shekarries brought a piece of hard wood with a 

 sharp point, and three or four wild jungle yams, 

 which he said these wild people must have dug up 

 just before we surprised them, as they were quite 

 fresh. I gave the yams to the child, who, after a 

 little hesitation began to eat, in which operation the 

 mother assisted. I then sent for some raw potatoes, 

 which both ate with great relish, though they still 

 evinced great fear of us, and watched with suspicion 

 every movement we made, with their little twink- 

 ling eyes. When our dinner was served we threw 

 them bits of meat and some boiled rice, which see- 

 ing us eat, they followed our example. When we 

 took our coffee after dinner I gave them some 

 sugar, at which they evinced their satisfaction by 



